Union-wide
Community-led
Inter- and Transdisciplinary Sessions
Disciplinary sessions

GI – Geosciences Instrumentation & Data Systems

Programme Group Chair: Pietro Tizzani

MAL12-GI

The Christiaan Huygens Medal, awarded annually by the European Geosciences Union (EGU) through its Geosciences Instrumentation and Data Systems (GI) Division, recognizes significant contributions in geoscientific instrumentation and data systems.
The 2025 recipient is Dr. Francesco Soldovieri, honored for his exceptional work in electromagnetic sensing and its applications. Dr. Soldovieri, Director of the Institute for Electromagnetic Sensing of the Environment (IREA) at the National Research Council (CNR) in Naples, Italy, has advanced radar data processing methodologies for applications spanning archaeology, cultural heritage diagnostics, geophysics, infrastructure monitoring, and security. His research, emphasizing electromagnetic modeling and inversion approaches, has enhanced non-invasive subsurface exploration techniques, benefiting the preservation of archaeological sites.
Dr. Soldovieri has authored over 260 journal articles and contributed to more than 370 conference proceedings, covering topics such as ground-penetrating radar (GPR), radar imaging, inverse scattering, and bioradar technologies. His innovative work has significantly influenced the use of GPR in various disciplines.
A key figure in the scientific community, Dr. Soldovieri has served as General Chair of the International Workshop on Advanced Ground Penetrating Radar (2007) and Co-Chair of the Ground Penetrating Radar Conference (2010). He is also a member of the editorial boards of prominent journals like IEEE Transactions on Computational Imaging and IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing.
The special session for the EGU Christiaan Huygens Medal 2025 will feature Dr. Soldovieri’s lecture, where he will present insights from his extensive research and discuss future directions in electromagnetic sensing technologies. This session celebrates his achievements and fosters knowledge exchange to drive advancements in geoscientific instrumentation and data systems.

Convener: Pietro Tizzani | Co-convener: Raffaele Castaldo

GI1 – General sessions on geoscience instrumentation

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officers: Vira Pronenko, Raffaele Castaldo

GI1.1 EDI

The Open Session on Geosciences Instrumentation is the European forum with an open call for professional conference papers in the field of Geosciences Instrumentation, Methods, Software and Data Systems. The session aims to inform the scientific and engineering geosciences communities about new and/or improved instrumentation and methods, and their related new or existing applications. The session also deals with new ways of utilizing observational data by novel approaches and the required data infrastructure design and organization.

The session is open to all branches of geoscience measurement techniques, including, but not limited to, optical, electromagnetic, seismic, acoustic and gravity. The session is intended as an open forum and discussion between representatives of different fields within geosciences is strongly encouraged. Past experience has shown that such mutual exchange and cross-fertilization between areas have been very successful and can open up for a breakthrough in frontier problems of modern geosciences.

The session is also open for applications related to environmental monitoring and security providing, like archeological surveys, rubbish deposit studies, unexploded ordnance and/or mines detection, water dam inspection, seismic hazards monitoring, etc.

Convener: Vira Pronenko | Co-conveners: Pietro Tizzani, Luca D Auria, Francesco MercoglianoECSECS, Filippo Accomando
GI1.3 EDI

This session combines two key aspects of the research concerning geoscientific instrumentation: the monitoring of water systems and of marginal and degraded areas.
Instrumentation and measurement technologies are currently playing a key role in the monitoring, assessment and protection of water resources.
The first part focuses on measurement techniques, sensing methods and data science implications for the observation of water systems, emphasizing the strong link between measurement aspects and computational aspects characterising the water sector.
We aim at providing an updated framework of the observational techniques, data processing approaches and sensing technologies for water management and protection, giving attention to today’s data science aspects, e.g. data analytics, big data and Artificial Intelligence.
We welcome contributions about field measurement approaches, development of new sensing techniques, low cost sensor systems and measurement methods enabling crowdsourced data collection.
Therefore, water quantity and quality measurements as well as water characterization techniques are within the scope of this session. Remote sensing techniques for the monitoring of water resources and/or the related infrastructures are also welcome. Contributions dealing with the integration of data from multiple sources are solicited, as well as the design of ICT architectures (including IoT-based networks).
Studies about signal and data processing techniques (including machine learning) and the integration between sensor networks and large data systems are also very encouraged.
The second part is devoted to a scientific/technological survey of observational strategies and sensing technologies for improving the quality of life and ensuring inclusivity of people in challenging social and economic contexts, such as marginal and degraded areas.
We welcome examples of the beneficial role of technological tools for the monitoring and protection of critical infrastructures (water, energy, transport), to ameliorate the inclusivity and ensure a correct exploitation of the resources, also in economic/social terms. We also focus on the exploitation of natural and cultural resources to improve the economy and quality of life in marginal areas, which in many cases are rural. Furthermore, attention will be devoted to the development and exploitation of low cost and scalable/portable sensing solutions for the monitoring of both large urban areas and poorly covered zones.

Solicited authors:
Remko Uijlenhoet
Co-organized by ESSI4/HS13
Convener: Andrea Scozzari | Co-conveners: Fabio Tosti, Maurizio Mazzoleni, Francesco Soldovieri, Anna Di Mauro
CL3.2.7 EDI

This session, which is co-organised by the Green Cluster (TRIQUETRA, THETIDA, RescueME, STECCI Horizon Europe projects funded under topic HORIZON-CL2-2022-HERITAGE-01-08) and the FPCUP action, aims to host discussions focused on the identification and quantification of the impacts of Climate Change on Cultural Heritage, using novel and state-of-the-art techniques. At the same time, the session serves as an opportunity to showcase the latest advances in the field of Cultural Heritage protection and preservation, through systematic monitoring and documentation, while simultaneously encouraging citizen engagement and the development of crowdsourcing applications and activities. The session will also highlight the importance of EU initiatives and funding in the field of Cultural Heritage, which faces a series of new challenges as a result of Climate Change. Finally, presentations will provide all interested parties with valuable insight into new strategies and applied technologies that may serve as paradigms moving forward.

Co-organized by EOS1/GI1
Convener: Anastasia AnastasiouECSECS | Co-conveners: Denis Istrati, Panagiotis Michalis, Katherine Peinhardt, Daniele Spizzichino
ESSI2.15 EDI

Cloud computing has emerged as a dominant paradigm, supporting industrial applications and academic research on an unprecedented scale. Despite its transformative potential, transitioning to the cloud continues to challenge organizations striving to leverage its capabilities for big data processing. Integrating cloud technologies with high-performance computing (HPC) unlocks powerful possibilities, particularly for computation-intensive AI/ML workloads. With innovations like GPUs, containerization, and microservice architectures, this convergence enables scalable solutions for Earth Observation (EO) and Earth System Modeling domains.
Pangeo (pangeo.io) represents a global, open-source community of researchers and developers collaborating to tackle big data challenges in geoscience. By leveraging a range of tools—from laptops to HPC and cloud infrastructure—the Pangeo ecosystem empowers researchers with an array of core packages, including Xarray, Dask, Jupyter, Zarr, Kerchunk, and Intake.
This session focuses on use cases involving both Cloud and HPC computing and showcasing applications of Pangeo’s core packages. The goal is to assess the current landscape and outline the steps needed to facilitate the broader adoption of cloud computing in Earth Observation and Earth Modeling data processing. We invite contributions that explore various cloud computing initiatives within these domains, including but not limited to:
This session aims to:
• Assess the current landscape and outline the steps needed to facilitate the broader adoption of cloud computing in Earth Observation and Earth Modeling data processing.
• Inspire researchers using or contributing to the Pangeo ecosystem to share their insights with the broader geoscience community and showcasenew applications of Pangeo tools addressing computational and data-intensive challenges.
We warmly welcome contributions that explore:
• Cloud Computing Initiatives: Federations, scalability, interoperability, multi-provenance data, security, privacy, and sustainable computing.
• Cloud Applications and Platforms: Development and deployment of IaaS, PaaS, SaaS, and XaaS solutions.
• Cloud-Native AI/ML Frameworks: Tools designed for AI/ML applications in EO and ESM.
• Operational Systems and Workflows: Cloud-based operational systems, data lakes, and storage solutions.
• HPC and Cloud Integration: Converging workloads to leverage the strengths of both computational paradigms.
In addition, we invite presentations showcasing applications of Pangeo’s core packages in:
• Atmosphere, Ocean, and Land Modeling
• Satellite Observations
• Machine Learning
• Cross-Domain Geoscience Challenges
This session emphasizes real-world use cases at the intersection of cloud and HPC computing. By sharing interactive workflows, reproducible research practices, and live executable notebooks, contributors can help map the current landscape and outline actionable pathways toward broader adoption of these transformative technologies in geoscience.

Co-organized by AS5/CL5/GI1/OS5
Convener: Tina Odaka | Co-conveners: Vasileios Baousis, Anne Fouilloux, Stathes Hadjiefthymiades, Ross A. W. SlaterECSECS, Alejandro Coca-CastroECSECS, Deyan Samardzhiev
EOS4.8 EDI

Sitting under a tree, you feel the spark of an idea, and suddenly everything falls into place. The following days and tests confirm: you have made a magnificent discovery — so the classical story of scientific genius goes…

But science as a human activity is error-prone, and might be more adequately described as "trial and error", or as a process of successful "tinkering" (Knorr, 1979). Thus we want to turn the story around, and ask you to share 1) those ideas that seemed magnificent but turned out not to be, and 2) the errors, bugs, and mistakes in your work that made the scientific road bumpy. What ideas were torn down or did not work, and what concepts survived in the ashes or were robust despite errors? We explicitly solicit Blunders, Unexpected Glitches, and Surprises (BUGS) from modeling and field or lab experiments and from all disciplines of the Geosciences.

Handling mistakes and setbacks is a key skill of scientists. Yet, we publish only those parts of our research that did work. That is also because a study may have better chances to be accepted for publication in the scientific literature if it confirms an accepted theory or if it reaches a positive result (publication bias). Conversely, the cases that fail in their test of a new method or idea often end up in a drawer (which is why publication bias is also sometimes called the "file drawer effect"). This is potentially a waste of time and resources within our community as other scientists may set about testing the same idea or model setup without being aware of previous failed attempts.

In the spirit of open science, we want to bring the BUGS out of the drawers and into the spotlight. In a friendly atmosphere, we will learn from each others' mistakes, understand the impact of errors and abandoned paths onto our work, and generate new insights for our science or scientific practice.

Here are some ideas for contributions that we would love to see:
- Ideas that sounded good at first, but turned out to not work.
- Results that presented themselves as great in the first place but turned out to be caused by a bug or measurement error.
- Errors and slip-ups that resulted in insights.
- Failed experiments and negative results.
- Obstacles and dead ends you found and would like to warn others about.

--
Knorr, Karin D. “Tinkering toward Success: Prelude to a Theory of Scientific Practice.” Theory and Society 8, no. 3 (1979): 347–76.

Solicited authors:
Jan Seibert
Co-organized by BG0/EMRP1/ESSI4/GD10/GI1/GI6/GM11/GMPV1/PS0/SM2/SSS11/ST4
Convener: Ulrike ProskeECSECS | Co-conveners: Laetitia Le Pourhiet, Daniel KlotzECSECS, Nobuaki Fuji, Jonas PyschikECSECS

GI2 – Data networks and analysis

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officers: Masatoshi Yamauchi, Andrea Vitale

GI2.4

In recent years, technologies based on Artificial Intelligence (AI), such as image processing, smart sensors, and intelligent inversion, have garnered significant attention from researchers in the geosciences community. These technologies offer the promise of transitioning geosciences from qualitative to quantitative analysis, unlocking new insights and capabilities previously thought unattainable.
One of the key reasons for the growing popularity of AI in geosciences is its unparalleled ability to efficiently analyze vast datasets within remarkably short timeframes. This capability empowers scientists and researchers to tackle some of the most intricate and challenging issues in fields like Geophysics, Seismology, Hydrology, Planetary Science, Remote Sensing, and Disaster Risk Reduction.
As we stand on the cusp of a new era in geosciences, the integration of artificial intelligence promises to deliver more accurate estimations, efficient predictions, and innovative solutions. By leveraging algorithms and machine learning, AI empowers geoscientists to uncover intricate patterns and relationships within complex data sources, ultimately advancing our understanding of the Earth's dynamic systems. In essence, artificial intelligence has become an indispensable tool in the pursuit of quantitative precision and deeper insights in the fascinating world of geosciences.
For this reason, aim of this session is to explore new advances and approaches of AI in Geosciences.

Solicited authors:
Mariarca D'Aniello
Co-organized by ESSI1/NP4
Convener: Andrea VitaleECSECS | Co-conveners: Luigi BiancoECSECS, Giacomo RoncoroniECSECS, Ivana VentolaECSECS
GI2.5 EDI

The radioactive materials are known as polluting materials that are hazardous for human society, but are also ideal markers in understanding dynamics and physical/chemical/biological reactions chains in the environment. Therefore, man-made radioactive contamination involves regional and global transport and local reactions of radioactive materials through atmosphere, soil and water system, ocean, and organic and ecosystem, and its relations with human and non-human biota. The topic also involves hazard prediction, risk assessment, nowcast, and countermeasures, , which is now urgent important for the nuclear power plants in Ukraine.

By combining long monitoring data (> halftime of Cesium 137 after the Chernobyl Accident in 1986, 13 years after the Fukushima Accident in 2011, and other events), we can improve our knowledgebase on the environmental behavior of radioactive materials and its environmental/biological impact. This should lead to improved monitoring systems in the future including emergency response systems, acute sampling/measurement methodology, and remediation schemes for any future nuclear accidents.

The following specific topics have traditionally been discussed:
(a) Atmospheric Science (emissions, transport, deposition, pollution);
(b) Hydrology (transport in surface and ground water system, soil-water interactions);
(c) Oceanology (transport, bio-system interaction);
(d) Soil System (transport, chemical interaction, transfer to organic system);
(e) Forestry;
(f) Natural Hazards (warning systems, health risk assessments, geophysical variability);
(g) Measurement Techniques (instrumentation, multipoint data measurements);
(h) Ecosystems (migration/decay of radionuclides).

The session consists of updated observations, new theoretical developments including simulations, and improved methods or tools which could improve observation and prediction capabilities during eventual future nuclear emergencies. New evaluations of existing tools, past nuclear contamination events and other data sets also welcome.

Convener: Daisuke Tsumune | Co-conveners: Roman Bezhenar, Masatoshi Yamauchi, Tomoko Ohta, Kazuyuki SakumaECSECS
ESSI3.1 EDI

Addressing global environmental and socio-technical challenges requires interdisciplinary, data-driven approaches. Today’s research produces unprecedented volumes and complexity of value-added research data and an increasing number of interactive data services, putting traditional information management systems to the test. Collaborative infrastructures are challenged by their dual role of advancing research and scientific assessments while facilitating transparent data and software sharing.

Since the breakthrough of datacubes as a contributor to Analysis-Ready Data, a series of implementations have been announced, and likewise services. However, often these are described through publications only and without publicly accessible deployments to evaluate.

We invite abstracts from all data stakeholders that highlight innovative platforms, frameworks, datacube tools, services, systems, and initiatives designed to enhance access and usability of data for research on topics such as climate change, natural hazards, sustainable development, etc. We welcome presentations describing collaborations across national and disciplinary boundaries as well as live demos of datacube tools and services that contribute to building trustworthy and interoperable data networks, guided by UNESCO’s Open Science recommendations, the FAIR and CARE data principles. The expected outcome for attendees is to get a realistic overview on the datacube tools, service landscape and ongoing collaborations that enable researchers worldwide to address pressing global problems through data.

Solicited authors:
Reyna Jenkyns,Colin Price
Co-organized by ERE1/GI2, co-sponsored by AGU and JpGU
Convener: Martina Stockhause | Co-conveners: Peter Baumann, Danie Kinkade, Yasuhiro Murayama, Alba BrobiaECSECS, Bruce Crevensten, Chen-Yu Hao
ESSI3.2 EDI

Almost a decade ago, the FAIR data guiding principles were introduced to the broader research community. These principles proposed a framework to increase the reusability of data in and across domains during and after the completion of e.g. research projects. In subdomains of the Earth System Sciences (ESS), like atmospheric sciences or partly geosciences, data reuse across institutions and geographical borders was already well-established, supported by community-specific and cross-domain standards like netCDF-CF, geospatial standards (e.g.OGC). Further, authoritative data producers such as CMIPs were already using Persistent Identifiers and corresponding handle systems for data published in their repositories – so it was often thought and communicated this data is “FAIR by design”.

However, fully implementing FAIR principles, particularly machine-actionability—the core idea behind FAIR—has proven challenging. Despite progress in awareness, standard-compliant data sharing, and the automation of data provenance, the ESS community continues to struggle to reach a community-wide consensus on the design, adoption, interpretation and implementation of the FAIR principles.

In this session, we invite contributions from all fields in Earth System Sciences that provide insights, case studies, and innovative approaches to advancing the adoption of the FAIR data principles. We aim to foster a collaborative dialogue on the progress our community has made, the challenges that lie ahead, and the strategies needed to achieve widespread acceptance and implementation of these principles, ultimately enhancing the future of data management and reuse.

We invite contributions focusing on, but not necessarily limited to,
- Challenges and solutions in interpreting and implementing the FAIR principles in different sub-domains of the ESS
- FAIR onboarding strategies for research communities
- Case studies of successful FAIR data implementation (or partial implementation) in ESS at infrastructure and research project level
- Methods and approaches to gauge the impact of FAIR data implementation in ESS
- Considerations on how AI might help to implement FAIR
- Future direction for FAIR data in ESS

Solicited authors:
Robert Huber
Co-organized by AS5/GD10/GI2
Convener: Barbara Magagna | Co-conveners: Ivonne Anders, Karsten Peters-von Gehlen, Anne Fouilloux, Jie Dodo XuECSECS
ESSI3.3 EDI

Performing research in Earth System Science is increasingly challenged by the escalating volumes and complexity of data, requiring sophisticated workflow methodologies for efficient processing and data reuse. The complexity of computational systems, such as distributed and high-performance heterogeneous computing environments, further increases the need for advanced orchestration capabilities to perform and reproduce simulations effectively. On the same line, the emergence and integration of data-driven models, next to the traditional compute-driven ones, introduces additional challenges in terms of workflow management. This session delves into the latest advances in workflow concepts and techniques essential to address these challenges taking into account the different aspects linked with High-Performance Computing (HPC), Data Processing and Analytics, and Artificial Intelligence (AI).

In the session, we will explore the importance of the FAIR (Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reusability) principles and provenance in ensuring data accessibility, transparency, and trustworthiness. We will also address the balance between reproducibility and security, addressing potential workflow vulnerabilities while preserving research integrity.

Attention will be given to workflows in federated infrastructures and their role in scalable data analysis. We will discuss cutting-edge techniques for modeling and data analysis, highlighting how these workflows can manage otherwise unmanageable data volumes and complexities, as well as best practices and progress from various initiatives and challenging use cases (e.g., Digital Twins of the Earth and the Ocean).

We will gain insights into FAIR Digital Objects, (meta)data standards, linked-data approaches, virtual research environments, and Open Science principles. The aim is to improve data management practices in a data-intensive world.
On these topics, we invite contributions from researchers illustrating their approach to scalable workflows as well as data and computational experts presenting current approaches offered and developed by IT infrastructure providers enabling cutting edge research in Earth System Science.

Solicited authors:
Valeriu Predoi
Co-organized by CR6/GI2/HS13/NP4/TS9
Convener: Karsten Peters-von Gehlen | Co-conveners: Miguel CastrilloECSECS, Ivonne Anders, Donatello EliaECSECS, Manuel Giménez de Castro MarcianiECSECS
ESSI2.13 EDI

Recent Earth System Sciences (ESS) datasets, such as those resulting from high-resolution numerical modelling, have increased both in terms of precision and size. These datasets are central to the advancement of ESS for the benefit of all stakeholders, and public policymaking on climate change. Extracting the full value from these datasets requires novel approaches to access, process, and share data. It is apparent that datasets produced by state-of-the-art applications are becoming so large that even current high-capacity data infrastructures are incapable of storing, let alone ensuring their usability. With future investment in hardware being limited, a viable way forward is to explore the possibilities of data compression and new data space implementation.

Data compression has gained interest for making data more manageable, speeding up transfer times, and reducing resource needs without affecting the quality of scientific analyses. Reproducing recent ML and forecasting results has become essential for developing new methods in operational settings. At the same time, replicability is a major concern for ESS and downstream applications and the necessary data accuracy needs further investigation. Research on data reduction and prediction interpretability helps improve understanding of data relationships and prediction stability.

In addition, new data spaces are being developed in Europe, such as the Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem and Green Deal Data Space, as well as multiple national data spaces. These provide access to data, through streamlined access, cloud processing and online visualization generating actionable knowledge enabling more effective decision-making. Analysis ready data can easily be accessed via API transforming data access and processing scalability. Developers and users will share opportunities and challenges of designing and using data spaces for research and industry.

This session connects developers and users of ESS big data, discussing how to facilitate the sharing, integration, and compression of these datasets, focusing on:
1) Approaches and techniques to enhance shareability of high-volume ESS datasets: data compression, novel data space implementation and evolution.
2) The effect of reduced data on the quality of scientific analyses.
3) Ongoing efforts to build data spaces and connect with existing initiatives on data sharing and processing, and examples of innovative services that can be built upon data spaces.

Solicited authors:
Milan Klöwer,Wolfgang Wagner
Co-organized by AS5/CL5/GD10/GI2/NP4
Convener: Clément BouvierECSECS | Co-conveners: William Ray, Mattia Santoro, Juniper TyreeECSECS, Weronika Borejko, Oriol TintoECSECS, Sara Faghih-NainiECSECS
G2.6 EDI

GNSS Interferometric Reflectometry (GNSS-IR) is an emerging ground-based remote sensing technique that uses reflected GNSS signals. This technique has been applied to measure a variety of variables including water level, significant wave height, snow accumulation, permafrost melt, soil moisture, vegetation water content and coastal subsidence. As the number of developers and users of GNSS-IR continues to grow, this session seeks to highlight advances in the (near real-time) acquisition, processing, analysis and application of GNSS-IR data in environmental sensing. The session welcomes contributions related to the algorithmic and technical improvement of GNSS-IR models, as well as the development of open-source hardware and software. We encourage discussions on GNSS-IR delivery products and their validation, the optimal exploitation of geodetic and affordable GNSS sensors for applications in interferometric reflectometry and initiatives for (near) real-time monitoring of environmental variables.

Co-organized by GI2
Convener: Makan KaregarECSECS | Co-conveners: Simon Williams, Alvaro Santamaría-Gómez, Wei Wan, Surui XieECSECS
NH8.2 EDI

Natural radioactivity fully affects our environment as a result of cosmic radiation from space and terrestrial sources from soil and minerals in rocks containing primordial radionuclides as Uranium, Thorium and Potassium. Among the terrestrial sources, Radon (222Rn) gas is considered the major source of ionising radiation exposure to the population and an indoor air pollutant due to its harmful effects on human health (cancerogenic, W.H.O.). Also, artificial radionuclides from nuclear and radiation accidents and incidents provide an additional contribution to the environmental radioactivity.
This session embraces all the aspects and challenges of environmental radioactivity including geological surveys, mineral and space resources exploration, atmosphere tracing with greenhouse gases and pollutant, groundwater contamination and a specific focus on radon hazard and risk assessment.
Studies about the use of fallout radionuclides as environmental tracers and the relevance of the radioactivity for public health, including the contamination from Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM), are welcome.
Contributions on novel methods and instrumentation for environmental radioactivity monitoring including portable detectors, airborne and drones’ surveys and geostatistical methods for radioactivity mapping are also encouraged.

Co-organized by GI2
Convener: Eleonora BenàECSECS | Co-conveners: Virginia Strati, Alessandra Sciarra, Anita Erőss, Eric PetermannECSECS

GI3 – Planetary Atmosphere and Ocean instrumentation system

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Bernard Foing

PS1.3 EDI

This session aims to provide a comprehensive platform for discussing the latest advancements in lunar science, exploration, and sustainable utilization.
We will cover critical aspects of lunar science, including the deep interior, subsurface structure, surface morphology, up to atmospheric dynamics and the solar wind interaction. Such studies can make use of lunar mission data, lunar samples, meteorites, terrestrial analogues, laboratory experiments, and / or modeling efforts.
Furthermore, highlighting results from past and current space missions, this session seeks to explore innovative ideas for future exploration, including insights on forthcoming space missions and instrumentation aiming to greatly advance our understanding of the Moon in the next decades. In addition, the session will focus on identifying strategic knowledge gaps crucial for the safe and sustainable exploration of cis-lunar space and the lunar surface by astronauts.
We welcome all relevant contributions — spanning theoretical models, observational data, and experimental findings — from experts of different fields including science and engineering. As such, the session aims to foster a comprehensive dialogue on the status and future of lunar exploration.

Solicited authors:
Adrien Broquet
Co-organized by GI3
Convener: Anna MittelholzECSECS | Co-conveners: Joana S. Oliveira, Chrysa Avdellidou, Bernard Foing
PS7.2 EDI

This session invites contributions to new or improved instrumentation and methods for space and sustainable planetary exploration, including novel and established applications. The session is open to all branches of planetary and space measurement tools and techniques, including, but not limited to optical, electromagnetic, seismic, acoustic, and gravity measurements. The session will also include a sub-session on radio science and techniques. This session is also intended as an open forum, where discussion between representatives of different fields within planetary, space and geosciences will be strongly encouraged, looking for a fruitful mutual exchange and cross fertilization between scientific areas.

Solicited authors:
Michel Blanc
Co-organized by GI3, co-sponsored by IAF and COSPAR
Convener: Bernard Foing | Co-conveners: Caroline HaslebacherECSECS, Paolo Tortora, Leah-Nani Alconcel, Linus StoeckliECSECS, Maxim Khodachenko, Shobhana Singh

GI4 – Earth Observation systems & instrumentation from remote to proximal sensing

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officers: Filippo Accomando, Susi Pepe

GI4.1

The accessibility of user-friendly, low-cost instruments remains a major challenge in Earth observation. Most existing equipment is difficult to deploy, expensive to operate, and requires specialized technical skills. Additionally, despite efforts by global organizations, a unified observation program has yet to be established.
To meet monitoring and research needs, sensors must easily integrate with data acquisition and transmission systems while meeting accuracy and stability requirements. Recent technological advances have created opportunities to enhance sensors, platforms, and communication systems, paving the way for IoT solutions and significantly improving Earth observation capabilities. Furthermore, low-cost and easy-to-deploy instrumentation is essential to Citizen Science, enabling public participation in scientific investigations and enhancing data acquisition.
This session welcomes studies on new low-cost instruments, methods, and data transmission applications. We invite general, technical, and applied studies of Earth observation applications from any discipline, including oceanography and marine sciences, atmospheric sciences, forestry, and land sciences. Examples include:
• Low-cost technologies applied to marine science
• Low-cost technologies applied to land science
• Open-source and open-access observation devices
• Development of networks to support connected objects
• Citizen science applications

Convener: Viviana Piermattei | Co-conveners: Patrick Gorringe, Riccardo Valentini
GI4.2

Light-weight uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been developed in recent decades, and their potential usage in science has been widely researched. High spatial resolution UAV imaging, multispectral images, gas analyzers, and samplers mounted on UAV became a standard data source for many scientific activities. Recent advances in accessible and fast communication protocols, lightweight and powerful onboard computing devices, and novel sensor developments provide remarkable opportunities for the use of UAVs in new, creative, and original ways. The advances were underpinned by new platforms for processing data coming off UAVs. We would like to hear about novel, non-standard uses of UAVs and underlying data processing platforms that help enable science and inspire innovative approaches for our fellow scientists.

Convener: Juri Klusak | Co-convener: Misha KrassovskiECSECS
GI4.3 EDI

This session invites contributions on the latest developments and results in lidar remote sensing of the atmosphere, covering • new lidar techniques as well as applications of lidar data for model verification and assimilation, • ground-based, airborne, and space-borne lidar systems, • unique research systems as well as networks of instruments, • lidar observations of aerosols and clouds, thermodynamic parameters and wind, and trace-gases. Atmospheric lidar technologies have shown significant progress in recent years. While, some years ago, there were only a few research systems, mostly quite complex and difficult to operate on a longer-term basis because a team of experts was continuously required for their operation, advancements in laser transmitter and receiver technologies have resulted in much more rugged systems nowadays, many of which are already operated routinely in networks and several even being fully automated and commercially available. Consequently, also more and more data sets with very high resolution in range and time are becoming available for atmospheric science, which makes it attractive to consider lidar data not only for case studies but also for extended model comparison statistics and data assimilation. Here, ceilometers provide not only information on the cloud bottom height but also profiles of aerosol and cloud backscatter signals. Scanning Doppler lidars extend the data to horizontal and vertical wind profiles. Raman lidars and high-spectral resolution lidars provide more details than ceilometers and measure particle extinction and backscatter coefficients at multiple wavelengths. Other Raman lidars measure water vapor mixing ratio and temperature profiles. Differential absorption lidars give profiles of absolute humidity or other trace gases (like ozone, NOx, SO2, CO2, methane etc.). Depolarization lidars provide information on the shapes of aerosol and cloud particles. In addition to instruments on the ground, lidars are operated from airborne platforms in different altitudes. Even the first space-borne missions are now in orbit while more are currently in preparation. All these aspects of lidar remote sensing in the atmosphere will be part of this session.

Co-organized by AS5/CL5
Convener: Andreas BehrendtECSECS | Co-conveners: Paolo Di GirolamoECSECS, Silke GrossECSECS, Diego Lange VegaECSECS, Joelle BuxmannECSECS
GI4.4 EDI

Cosmic rays carry information about space and solar activity, and, once near the Earth, they produce isotopes, influence genetic information, and are extraordinarily sensitive to water. Given the vast spectrum of interactions of cosmic rays with matter in different parts of the Earth and other planets, cosmic-ray research ranges from studies of the solar system to the history of the Earth, and from health and security issues to hydrology, agriculture, and climate change.
Although research on cosmic-ray particles is connected to a variety of disciplines and applications, they all share similar questions and challenges regarding the physics of detection, modeling, and the influence of environmental factors.

The session brings together scientists from all fields of research that are related to monitoring and modeling of cosmogenic radiation. It will allow the sharing of expertise amongst international researchers as well as showcase recent advancements in their field. The session aims to stimulate discussions about how individual disciplines can share their knowledge and benefit from each other.

We solicit contributions related but not limited to:
- Health, security, and radiation protection: cosmic-ray dosimetry on Earth and its dependence on environmental and atmospheric factors
- Planetary space science: satellite and ground-based neutron and gamma-ray sensors to detect water and soil constituents
- Neutron and Muon monitors: detection of high-energy cosmic-ray variations and its dependence on local, atmospheric, and magnetospheric factors
- Hydrology and climate change: low-energy neutron sensing to measure water in reservoirs at and near the land surface, such as soil, snowpack, and vegetation
- Cosmogenic nuclides: as tracers of atmospheric circulation and mixing; as a tool in archaeology or glaciology for dating of ice and measuring ablation rates; and as a tool for surface exposure dating and measuring rates of surficial geological processes
- Detector design: technological advancements in the detection of cosmic rays and cosmogenic particles
- Cosmic-ray modeling: advances in modeling of the cosmic-ray propagation through the magnetosphere and atmosphere, and their response to the Earth's surface
- Impact modeling: How can cosmic-ray monitoring support environmental models, weather and climate forecasting, agricultural and irrigation management, and the assessment of natural hazards

Co-organized by HS13/PS4/ST1
Convener: Martin Schrön | Co-conveners: Daniel RascheECSECS, Lena ScheiffeleECSECS, Cosimo BrogiECSECS, Jannis WeimarECSECS
GI4.5 EDI

Satellite measurements from space are vital for studying Earth’s climate and weather, and offer insights into our evolving atmosphere, surface, and oceans. To tackle imminent climate questions, modern missions are built with synergistic measurements between instruments and joint science products in mind. They also advance the way we sample the Earth with multi-angle polarization, hyperspectral observations, novel cloud-penetrating radar, and constellations of satellites in various orbits, as examples. These new missions increase the confidence in our climate trends and actionable science products.

NASA successfully launched the Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission on February 8, 2024. The spacecraft carries three groundbreaking instruments: the Ocean Color Instrument (OCI), the Hyper-Angular Rainbow Polarimeter (HARP2), contributed by the University of Maryland Baltimore County, and the Spectro-polarimeter for Planetary Exploration (SPEXone), contributed by the Netherlands Institute for Space Research. This mission makes simultaneous measurements of the optical properties of water bodies, land, and the atmosphere: the first of their kind. PACE measurements are complemented by ESA’s Earth Cloud Aerosol Radiation Explorer (EarthCARE). This mission contains the first spaceborne dual Doppler radar for in-cloud precipitation detection (CPR), as well as co-located lidar (ATLID), multi-band radiometer (MSI), and top-of-atmosphere flux (BBR) sensors. Over the next decade, lessons learned from these missions and others will support the launch of more multi-angle polarimeter and synergistic missions: 3MI, MAIA, and CO2M.

This session invites research in instrument calibration, science, and validation leveraging data from NASA PACE and these new and upcoming missions, and relevant field campaigns such as PACE-PAX and ORCESTRA. Topics include pre-launch, on-orbit, and vicarious calibration, radiative transfer theory, algorithm development, biogeochemistry, and atmospheric studies, with a focus on cross-disciplinary collaboration to maximize the potential of these innovative datasets.

Co-organized by AS5/BG9
Convener: Brent McBride | Co-conveners: S. Morgaine McKibben, Skye Caplan, Timon Hummel, Bertrand Fougnie
GM2.3 EDI | PICO

Sediment transport is a fundamental component of all geomorphic systems (including fluvial, aeolian, coastal, hillslopes and glacial), yet it is something that we still find surprisingly difficult both to monitor and to model. Robust data on where and how sediment transport occurs are needed to address outstanding research questions, including the spatial and temporal controls on critical shear stress, the influence of varying grain size distributions, and the impact of large magnitude events. Recent developments have provided a) new opportunities for measuring sediment transport in the field; and b) new ways to represent sediment transport in both physical laboratory models and in numerical models. These developments include (but are not limited to) the application of techniques such as seismic and acoustic monitoring, 3D imaging (e.g. CT and MRI scanning), deployment of sensors such as accelerometers, replication of field topography using 3D printing, use of luminescence as a sediment tracer, remote sensing of turbidity, discrete numerical modelling, and new statistical approaches.

In this session we welcome contributions from all areas of geomorphology that develop new methods for monitoring and modelling all types of sediment transport, or that showcase an application of such methods. Contributions from ECRs and underrepresented groups are particularly encouraged.

Co-organized by GI4
Convener: Rebecca Hodge | Co-conveners: Anshul YadavECSECS, Laure Guerit, Marijke de Vet, Shawn Chartrand
HS8.2.8 EDI

The Critical Zone (CZ), the Earth's outer layer extending from the top of the vegetation canopy to the bottom of circulating groundwater, is essential for sustaining life, supporting ecosystems, and maintaining environmental health. Understanding this complex system requires collaborative, multidisciplinary approaches that integrate diverse perspectives and innovative methodologies, involving observations, modelling, and integration of the two. This session will highlight advances in understanding the interplay between soils, hydrology, and biogeochemical cycling, as well as the complex interactions between groundwater flow and other CZ components at different spatial scales. Drawing on data from established CZ observatories and networks, it will illustrate how diverse climates, geological settings, vegetation, and land-use practices influence groundwater processes and CZ evolution. Particular emphasis will be placed on the value of international collaboration and the importance of understanding how rapid surface processes interact with the slower dynamics of groundwater to collectively shape the CZ over time. Discussions will also address the potential impacts of climate change, extreme weather events, and wildfires on groundwater recharge, discharge patterns, and water quality. The overall goal is to enhance appreciation of collaborative research approaches and emphasise groundwater’s central role in CZ functioning.

Solicited authors:
Clement Roques,Simone Gelsinari,Dipankar Dwivedi
Co-organized by ESSI4/GI4/SSS6
Convener: Agnès RivièreECSECS | Co-conveners: Jeffrey Munroe, Anne Jost, Bhavna Arora, Claudia VoigtECSECS, Ronan AbhervéECSECS
GM2.7 EDI

Transport of sediments in geophysical flows occurs in mountainous, fluvial, estuarine, coastal, aeolian and other natural or man-made environments on Earth, while also shapes the surface of planets such as Mars, Titan, and Venus. Understanding the motion of sediments is still one of the most fundamental problems in hydrological and geophysical sciences. Such processes can vary across a wide range of scales - from the particle to the landscape - which can directly impact both the form (geomorphology) and, on Earth, the function (ecology and biology) of natural systems and the built infrastructure surrounding them. In particular, feedback between fluid and sediment transport as well as particle interactions including size sorting are a key processes in surface dynamics, finding a range of important applications, from hydraulic engineering and natural hazard mitigation to landscape evolution, geomorphology and river ecology.

A) particle-scale interactions and transport processes:
- mechanics of entrainment and disentrainment (fluvial and aeolian flows)
- momentum (turbulent impulses) and energy transfer between turbulent flows and particles
- upscaling and averaging techniques for stochastic transport processes
- granular flows in dry and submerged environments
- grain shape effects in granular flow and sediment transport
- interaction among grain sizes in poorly sorted mixtures, including particle segregation
- discrete element modelling of transport processes and upscaling into continuum frameworks
B) reach-scale sediment transport and geomorphic processes
- links between flow, particle transport, bedforms and stratigraphy
- derivation and solution of equations for multiphase flows (inc. fluvial and aeolian flows)
- shallow water hydro-sediment-morphodynamic processes
- highly unsteady and complex water-sediment or granular flows
- flash floods, debris flows and landslides due to extreme rainfall
C) large-scale landscape evolution, geohazards, and engineering applications
- natural and built dam failures and compound disasters
- coastal processes, e.g., long-shore and cross-shore sediment transport and the evolution of beach profile/shoreline
- reservoir operation schemes and corresponding fluvial processes
- design of hydraulic structures such as fish passages, dam spillways, also considering the impact of sediment
- dredging, maintenance and regulation for large rivers and navigational waterways

Solicited authors:
Thomas Pähtz,julien chauchat
Co-organized by GI4/NP3
Convener: Manousos Valyrakis | Co-conveners: Rui Miguel Ferreira, Lu JingECSECS, Xiuqi WangECSECS, Zhiguo He
ESSI4.11 EDI

Sustainable agriculture and forestry face the challenges of lacking scalable solutions and sufficient data for monitoring vegetation structural and physiological traits, vegetation (a)biotic stress, and the impacts of environmental conditions and management practices on ecosystem productivity. Remote sensing from spaceborne, unmanned/manned airborne, and proximal sensors provides unprecedented data sources for agriculture and forestry monitoring across scales. The synergy of hyperspectral, multispectral, thermal, LiDAR, or microwave data can thoroughly identify vegetation stress symptoms in near real-time and combined with modeling approaches to forecast ecosystem productivity. This session welcomes a wide range of contributions on remote sensing for sustainable agriculture and forestry including, but not limited to: (1) the development of novel sensing instruments and technologies; (2) the quantification of ecosystem energy, carbon, water, and nutrient fluxes across spatial and temporal scales; (3) the synergy of multi-source and multi-modal data; (4) the development and applications of machine learning, radiative transfer modeling, or their hybrid; (5) the integration of remotely sensed plant traits to assess ecosystem functioning and services; (6) the application of remote sensing techniques for vegetation biotic and abiotic stress detection; and (7) remote sensing to advance nature-based solutions in agriculture and forestry for climate change mitigation. This session is inspired by the cost action program, Pan-European Network of Green Deal Agriculture and Forestry Earth Observation Science (PANGEOS, https://pangeos.eu/), which aims to leverage state-of-the-art remote sensing technologies to advance field phenotyping workflows, precision agriculture/forestry practices and larger-scale operational assessments for a more sustainable management of Europe’s natural resources.

Solicited authors:
Kaiyu Guan
Co-organized by BG9/GI4/SSS9
Convener: Sheng WangECSECS | Co-conveners: Shawn Kefauver, Holly Croft, Egor PrikaziukECSECS
ERE1.6 EDI

This session aims to present recent advances in the analysis of environmental and soil contaminations using Applied Geophysics, Remote Sensing and Artificial Intelligence.
Characterizing and understanding the surface and subsurface is a challenge for many scientific areas.
Applied Geophysics investigates underground using a variety of non-invasive, and non-destructive techniques such as ground-penetrating radar, magnetics, electrical resistivity tomography, electromagnetic induction, and seismics. Remote Sensing uses methods such as photogrammetry, LIDAR, GNSS, and satellite hyperspectral data to determine physical properties at a distance. Some remote sensing technologies can also provide information from the subsurface or interior of structures. Artificial Intelligence, namely Machine Learning, can be a useful tool to manage information using as input data provided by different methods, allowing the calculation of new contamination maps, that can help in the analysis of contamination areas.
Knowledge in these fields can be applied to a variety of research topics, in addition to laboratorial chemical analysis procedures, namely, to evaluate environmental pollutants (e.g. potentially toxic metals), and contributing to increasing knowledge about contaminated areas. When combined with other methods, they enable the development of integrated models of environmental management of contaminated areas, allowing the development of environmental risk maps, and contributing to the reduction of sampling and operational costs, as well as the reduction of assessment times in the management of contaminated areas.
The potential for replicability of this approaches is high, and can be applied in mines, landfills, industry and intensive agriculture.
This session will collect the contributions from Applied Geophysics, Remote Sensing, and Artificial Intelligence on the following topics:
- Environmental studies: characterization of the soil contamination by potentially toxic metals.
- Innovations in data acquisition, and processing of Geophysical, Remote Sensing and AI methods.

Co-organized by GI4/SSS10
Convener: Rui Jorge OliveiraECSECS | Co-conveners: Bento Caldeira, Maria João Costa, Miguel Potes, Patrícia Palma
G2.5 EDI | PICO

The precise positioning at centimeter level with GPS has been available for decades, which is lately strengthened by the emerging Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), such as the European Galileo, Chinese BeiDou, and Russian GLONASS, making positioning cost-effective and compact. OEM boards of various qualities and single-board microcontrollers allow construction of low-cost/mass-market/consumer-grade GNSS receivers that are used for applications requiring precise positioning, sensor synchronisation, GNSS reflectometry, phase time delay and signal attenuation. These applications are spread over fields such as geodesy, hydrology, (hydro-)meteorology, volcanology, natural hazards, cryospheric and biospheric sciences and (urban) navigation. Moreover, they are valuable for deriving and monitoring geophysical phenomena such as sea-level rise, crustal or surface deformation. We solicit abstracts on instrumentation and innovative applications in different fields of research, as well as algorithms, and sensor calibration and integration. We welcome any other contributions that highlight the challenges of using low-cost GNSS receivers and antennas.

Co-organized by GI4
Convener: Balaji Devaraju | Co-conveners: Tobias Kersten, Franziska KochECSECS, Jens-Andre Paffenholz, Robert OdolinskiECSECS
SSS9.12 EDI

Agriculture is pivotal in the European economy and the global food supply. Europe is a significant producer of diverse crops, contributing significantly to feeding the world's population. The quality and characteristics of agricultural products are closely linked to the specific environmental conditions in which they are grown. These environmental factors, including climate, soil, and water, can vary significantly across regions and are increasingly influenced by the challenges of climate change.
Understanding the spatial and temporal variability of environmental factors is crucial for managing and preserving agricultural landscapes and adapting to climate change's current and future impacts.
This requires a deep understanding of plants’ mechanisms for acclimation, keeping in mind that functional traits (e.g., phenology,etc.) can be indicators and proxies of plant status, plasticity and resilience. Moreover, it involves applied research and technological innovation in agriculture, including the use of sensors to monitor environmental variables, remote sensing and drones for crop monitoring, predictive models for yield and disease, and advanced methods to study nutrient cycles and soil health.
Furthermore, growing public awareness of the importance of ecosystem health and sustainability has led to adopting quantitative approaches to understand the link between agricultural practices and ecosystem services, which are crucial for achieving long-term environmental goals. Agroecological approaches, such as cover cropping, organic amendments, and integrated pest management, are being increasingly adopted to enhance biodiversity, soil health, water and nutrient retention, and resilience to climate change.
On these bases, the session will delve into:
- Quantifying and Spatially Modeling Environmental Factors: Examining the complex interplay of climate, soil, and water and their influence on plant growth, yield, and quality.
- Agricultural Resilience to Climate Change: Exploring the adaptability of agricultural systems in the face of a changing climate and identifying strategies for adaptation and mitigation.
- Sustainable Agricultural Practices and Ecosystem Services: Analyzing the impact of diverse agricultural practices on soil and water quality, biodiversity, and related ecosystem services.
- Precision Agriculture and Technological Innovation: Utilizing advanced technologies to optimize resource use, improve crop management, and enhance sustainability.

Co-organized by BG8/GI4
Convener: Antonello Bonfante | Co-conveners: Veronica De Micco, Anna Brook, Andrea VitaleECSECS, Alessandra Iannuzzi
AS5.8 EDI

Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS) are an emerging technology, significantly expanding observational capabilities in atmospheric and climate related sciences. This expansion is enabled by the increased availability and deployment of UAS. The rapid development of these platforms in recent years, combined with advances in miniaturised sensors, has led to a growing dataset that supports various aspects of atmospheric research in different environmental domains with linkages to hydrology, ecology, volcanology or geochemistry as well as applied sciences such as wind energy or transport of pollutants and aerosol particles.
This session invites abstracts discussing scientific contributions in atmospheric and climate sciences using various platforms, including fixed-wing UAS, multicopters, and tethered balloon/kite systems (TBS) etc. The topics could include presentations on the development of novel platforms and instrumentation, recent measurement efforts leveraging UAS systems, deployment of UAS to enhance the weather and climate prediction and monitoring networks, data analysis and synthesis from past UAS field campaigns, and other scientific interpretations of UAS-based datasets to improve process understanding, numerical model prediction, data assimilation and parameterisation development.

Solicited authors:
Debbie OSullivan
Co-organized by GI4
Convener: Norman Wildmann | Co-conveners: Andreas Platis, Maria KezoudiECSECS, Abdullah BolekECSECS
SM6.1 EDI

This session will cover applied and theoretical aspects of geophysical imaging, modelling and inversion using active- and passive-source seismic measurements as well as other geophysical techniques (e.g., gravity, magnetic, electromagnetic) to investigate properties of the Earth’s lithosphere and asthenosphere, and explore the processes involved. We invite contributions focused on methodological developments, theoretical aspects, and applications. Studies across the scales and disciplines are particularly welcome.

Among others, the session may cover the following topics:
- Active- and passive-source imaging
- Full waveform inversion developments and applications
- Advancements and case studies in 2D and 3D imaging
- DAS imaging
- Interferometry and Marchenko imaging
- Seismic attenuation and anisotropy
- Developments and applications of multi-scale and multi-parameter inversion
- Joint inversion of seismic and complementary geophysical data

Solicited authors:
Maximilian Lowe
Co-organized by GI4
Convener: Laura Gómez de la PeñaECSECS | Co-conveners: Milena Marjanovic, Andrzej Górszczyk, Pascal Edme, Marta Neres

GI5 – Earth surface and subsurface methods of investigation

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officers: Fabio Tosti, Soldovieri Francesco

GI5.1 EDI

Rapid population growth, with more than 70% of the world's population expected to live in cities by 2050, is making
urban areas and civil infrastructures crucial elements of the modern society. On the other hand, natural hazards
associated with climate change are making urban areas and civil infrastructures more and more exposed and
vulnerable to extreme events. Accordingly, the strategic programs for the sustainability and resilience of cities and civil
infrastructures (e.g. bridges, dams, lifelines) are promoting the development of novel strategies and methodologies for
non-destructive and not, or minimally, invasive surface and subsurface geophysical exploration and monitoring.
The session aims at presenting and discussing recent technological and methodological advances in urban geophysics.
Particular attention will be towards novel and effective modalities of performing surveys by means of seismic and electromagnetic methods, innovative sensors (e.g. fibre optics, MEMS) for dense and distributed geophysical network arrays, the use of AI-based algorithms and machine learning technologies for data processing and analysis, monitoring approaches based on augmented vision strategies of geophysical data. Furthermore, great attention
will be devoted to the presentation of applicative case studies, to the analysis of the interaction between subsurface, soil and built environment, and to the discussion of the contribute provided by the applied geophysics in urban programs for the “compact cities”, representing a new challenge
for avoiding urban sprawl and adaptation to climate change. The session also aims at promoting the activities of Early Career Scientists (ECS) in facing open challenges in the framework of urban geophysics.

Solicited authors:
Elita Li
Convener: Vincenzo Lapenna | Co-conveners: Jean Dumoulin, Filippos Vallianatos, Ilaria CatapanoECSECS, Maria Rosaria Gallipoli
GI5.2

Sustainability and resilience have become mainstream goals of political agendas globally, contrasting the causes of climate change and mitigating its effects, respectively. Built environment issues, infrastructure maintenance and rehabilitation, urbanisation and environmental impact are pushing for broader-scale goals, like climate change assessment and natural disaster prediction and management. In this context, Non-destructive testing (NDT) and Earth Observation (EO) methods lend themselves to be instrumental at developing new monitoring and maintenance approaches.
Despite the technological maturity reached by NDT and EO, important research gaps on standalone technologies and their integration are still unexplored. One challenging issue is the development of monitoring systems based on the integration of sensing technologies with advanced modelling, ICT and position/navigation topics up to IOT and the new concept of citizen engineer. The goal is to provide stakeholders with handy and user-friendly information to support maintenance and controlling major risks.
This Session primarily aims at disseminating contributions from state-of-the-art NDT and EO methods, promoting stand-alone technology and their integration for the development of new investigation/monitoring methods, applications, theoretical and numerical algorithms, and prototypes for sustainable and resilient infrastructure and built environments.
The followings are areas of interest and priority for this Session:
- sensor types, systems and working modes (acoustic/electric/electromagnetic/nuclear/radiography/thermal/optical/vibration sensors; remote and ground-based, embedded sensing systems; stand-alone and integrated multi-source sensing modes);
- advanced processing methods and information analysis techniques (multi-dimensional signal processing; image processing; data processing and information analysis; inversion approaches, AI);
- multi-sensor, multi-temporal and multi-modal data fusion and integration (image fusion; spatio-temporal data fusion; AI and machine learning for data fusion and integration);
- ICT for spatial data infrastructure, distributed computing and decision support systems;
- citizens as “sensors” for defect detection and data collection;
- new NDT applications and EO missions for downstream implementations;
- NDT and EO for new standards, policies and best practices;
- case studies relevant to built environment diagnostics and monitoring.

Convener: Andrea Benedetto | Co-conveners: Imad Al-Qadi